


Goodnight Calls

by eggshua (you_lynxed_it)



Series: goodnight calls + morning calls [1]
Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: 5+1 Things, Alternate Universe - College/University, Angst, Fluff, Long-Distance Friendship, Long-Distance Relationship (kind of), Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-30
Updated: 2016-08-30
Packaged: 2018-08-12 02:14:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,784
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7916470
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/you_lynxed_it/pseuds/eggshua
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Five times Seungcheol doesn’t say ‘I love you’ to Jisoo, and one time he does.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Goodnight Calls

**Author's Note:**

> italics are when jisoo's speaking b/c it's like... over the phone and stuff

“How’s Los Angeles?”

_“It’s… good? I don’t know.”_

“You don’t know?”

_“I’ve just been missing it for so long, you know? And, it’s like, I finally get there, and it doesn’t feel as great as I thought it would.”_

Seungcheol hums, putting the phone on speaker so he can pick up the cat. “Why’s that?”

_“It’s just, I miss Korea. I really do. And my friends back in Los Angeles- well, they’re all busy with their lives, so I don’t really have anyone close to me here. I just miss our friends. How are they? Seungcheol? Are you there?”_

“Yeah, just had to get Pickles away from the soup I’m cooking. Your cat is so greedy.”

_“He’s your cat, too, you know. I think he likes you more than me.”_

“That’s silly. He hasn’t stopped crying since you left.”

_“Doesn’t mean he likes you any less.”_

“Anyways, it’s because of your stupid cat that I can’t get a new roommate.” Seungcheol bops Pickles on the nose, then cradles him closer to his chest when the cat starts to whine. “There was this kid named Minghao, but he started sneezing as soon as he came in. Apparently he didn’t know he was allergic to cats.”

_“Finding a new replacement for me already?”_

“Yup.”

_“Well, I sure hope they’re patient enough to fold your laundry.”_

“Hey! You know, in the week that you’ve been gone, I’ve been watching YouTube videos, and I think I can finally fold a shirt.”

 _“Congratulations,”_ Jisoo says drily. _“You know how to fold a shirt. I bet you can’t fold it as great as I can.”_

“You fold clothes like a grandma who’s just taken sleeping pills.”

_“Might I remind you who’s folded your clothes for the past four years?”_

“Alright, alright. I give up. Ow!”

_“Was that a thud? Did you drop my baby?”_

Seungcheol scowls at the cat, rubbing his arm. “He scratched me!”

_“Is he okay?”_

“He’s fine. Cats land on their feet, sweetie.”

_“Not always. Geez, be careful with him.”_

“Alright, alright. I swear, when you die, I’m kicking that cat out.”

_“When I die? Are you planning to kill me?”_

“Maybe, if you don’t come back soon.”

_“I’m coming back in the summer, so don’t worry. I have to come see my darling. Oh, and you, of course.”_

“Ouch, that hurts. Well, the soup is starting to do some weird orange stuff and I don’t know what that means, so I’ve gotta go.”

_“I should go to sleep, too.”_

“Sleep?”

_“Yeah, it’s midnight over here. What’s it in Seoul, like three?”_

“It’s four in the evening over here. Huh. That’s cool.”

_“Yup. I love you, Seungcheol.”_

“Yeah. Good night.”

 

* * *

 

 

“You haven’t called me since August.”

_“Medical school is hard, dude.”_

“For you? Hong ‘Perfection’ Jisoo, with your straight A’s and fantastic English? No way.”

_“My English is actually a little rusty after ten years in Korea. Especially after hanging around Seungkwan and picking up on his English ‘Seungkwanisms’. I’ve actually said ‘kimbap kidding’ to Hansol and he fell on the floor. I thought he died, but he was just laughing.”_

“Hansol?” Seungcheol feels the pangs of _something_ stirring in his chest. “Who’s that?”

_“Oh, that’s my roommate. Apartment bills are expensive, especially for a broke medical school student like me. Hansol speaks both English and Korean, so it’s really easy to talk to him. How’s your roommate situation going?”_

“I’m set to meet some guy called Mingyu on Thursday. He’s an accounting student, too, but he’s two years younger. It’ll be good for him; I can help him with homework.”

_“Oh, wow. Choi Seungcheol, you saint. By the way, how is accounting working for you?”_

“It’s great. I still have the job at the firm, but it’s gotten harder since I’m trying to focus on getting my master’s now.”

_“Ooh. Fancy.”_

“Not as fancy as medical school. _Nerd_.”

Jisoo laughs, and even over the phone it’s clear and sweet and affectionate, and heart-warmingly familiar. _“Oh,_ I’m _the nerd?”_

“Yup. You have those dorky glasses.”

_“I’ll have you know that Hansol think they’re cool as heck.”_

“Right. I’ll have to meet this Hansol dude sometime.”

_“We can Skype him when I visit you in the summer.”_

“Okay. Hey, why don’t you ever Skype me? Why are we always just talking?”

_“‘Cause I don’t want to see your ugly face.”_

“Hey! You’re so mean to me.”

_“I’m just kidding, cutie. We can Skype when Hansol stops playing video games and lets me use the computer.”_

“Alright.”

_“Well, it’s probably getting late on your end.”_

“Yeah. I miss you.”

_“I miss you, too. And I love you.”_

“I know.”

 

* * *

 

 

_“Hey! You look good.”_

The very first thing that Seungcheol notices is the mess of pink hair on Jisoo’s head, and those _dorky_ glasses that he’d wear when he was reading. The excitement of seeing Jisoo again, even if it’s through the computer screen, makes his heart jittery- although he’d never admit it.

“Thanks. You’re not looking too bad yourself, ice cream cone.”

Jisoo snorts. _“You’re ridiculous.”_

“Your apartment looks nice.”

_“Thanks. Hansol left for the weekend, so I had the chance to tidy it up. Usually it looks like it got cut in half by a natural disaster.”_

“I feel you. Ever since Mingyu got here, I’ve been picking up Cheeto bags and vacuuming crumbs off of the carpet.”

_“Kids, am I right?”_

“Kids who procrastinate on accounting homework.”

_“Ha. Is he a good roommate? Besides the Cheetos, I mean.”_

“Mingyu? Yeah. Yeah, he’s a good kid.”

_“That’s good to hear.”_

“Pickles seems to hate him, though. I swear, that cat has never forgiven me for letting you leave.”

_“Aw. I wish I could have taken him with me.”_

“Nope. Mine.”

_“Somebody’s attached.”_

“He’s been good company.”

_“I bet he has. Haven’t you been hanging out with our friends?”_

Seungcheol frowns slightly. “I haven’t really been in contact with a lot of them. They’ve been, well, fighting a lot recently and it’s hard being around them.”

 _“Really?”_ Jisoo looks concerned. _“What are they fighting about?”_

“It’s just- well, you know how Seokmin got together with Yuna last month?”

_“Mhm.”_

“Well, Jeonghan has been pissed because he met Yuna first. I guess he kind of always thought Yuna was his girl.”

_“Well, that’s just stupid. I haven’t even seen Seokmin and Yuna in the same room but I already know they’re perfect together.”_

“Yeah, they’re cute. And along with that, Seungkwan and Jihoon have been tense over things. Music things, maybe. I don’t know. They’re just always snappy with each other.”

_“Hm. Unresolved romantic tension, maybe?”_

“I don’t think that’s it.”

_“Well, the music industry can be stressful and tense. That’s why I- ah, my baby!”_

Seungcheol grins and repositions Pickles on his lap. “He heard your voice.”

 _“Aww!”_ Jisoo’s smile could power a lightbulb. _“Hi, baby! Who’s my sweet kitty pie? Hmm?”_

“You’re disgusting,” Seungcheol whines. “I hope you don’t talk like that in real life.”

_“Only to cats and babies.”_

“Pickles is getting chubby, isn’t he? He only eats that really good-quality meat stuff these days.”

_“That’s good. At least he’s eating something.”_

“Are _you_ eating well? You look thin.”

Jisoo waves dismissively. _“You don’t need to worry about me. I’m twenty-three; I can take care of myself.”_

“Well, Pickles is thirty-three in human years and he still needs me to cuddle him to go to sleep.”

_“He’s a cat, Cheol. Ah, it seems like just yesterday when he was a one-month-old kitten.”_

“He’s a grown man- er, cat, now.”

_“He’ll always be a little baby to me.”_

“Your _little baby_ tore up my jeans yesterday.”

_“I hear ripped jeans are back in fashion.”_

Seungcheol laughs. “Shut up.”

 _“Speaking of fashion, do you like what I’m wearing?”_ Jisoo stands up, giving Seungcheol a view of a sweater and jeans.

“Sure. I guess? It looks normal.”

_“Good. I hope Hansol likes it.”_

“Since when did you care about your clothes?”

_“I don’t. We’re just going to this fancy new Italian restaurant and I don’t want to embarrass him too much with my ‘old person clothes’.”_

“How old is he, anyways?”

_“Oh, he’s nineteen. He’s in his second year as a biochemistry major. He used to be a rapper, just like you.”_

“I wasn’t _really_ a rapper.” Seungcheol feels less intimidated at the fact that Hansol is a biochemistry major. Maybe he’s just a nerd, with glasses and the like.

_“Right. Remember the mixtape you made, the summer of freshman year?”_

“Oh. My. God. We do not talk about that in this house.”

_“It’s in my phone, you know. I downloaded it and everything, and I listen to it every morning.”_

“Nope. Nope. That mixtape was so embarrassing.”

 _“It was cute!_ _‘The crowd goes crazy, crazy, my whole body is covered in sweat-”_

“Hong Jisoo, do _not_ rap my lyrics back to me, I swear.”

“ _I’m the type of guy who’s sincere to my bones-”_

“That was the most embarrassing thing I’ve ever written, you know. This summer, we’re hanging out at Jihoon’s studio and I’m going to make a _real_ mixtape.”

_“Sounds fun. How is Jihoon, by the way? Are him and Seungkwan still fighting?”_

“Yeah. They just drifted apart, I guess. It’s sad.”

 _“That_ is _sad. Are they doing okay?”_

“Seungkwan’s been really upset. I guess Jihoon’s doing fine? He’s writing lots of lyrics, and is pretty much sub-tweeting- well, I guess the musical equivalent of subtweeting- Seungkwan in most of them.”

_“That sucks. I should call Seungkwan later and talk to him.”_

“I don’t know. I think they’re just better off not being friends. They’re not exactly...compatible.”

_“Right. Is Jeonghan still mad over Yuna?”_

“Nah. Jeonghan got a new girl. Her name’s Yerin. And- hear this- she’s Yuna’s best friend.”

 _“Oh, wow, the_ drama. _”_

“I know. I didn’t know adults could have this much drama.”

_“Well, Jeonghan does have the mentality of a five-year-old.”_

“Very true, very true.”

_“I miss everyone. I can’t wait to see them again.”_

“Well, our group kind of went downhill since you left. And it’s not even because of you. _For once._ ”

_“Hey, I apologized about the carrot cake.”_

Seungcheol smiles. “I know. It was hilarious.”

_“This is making me all nostalgic. I guess I should chat with Seungkwan, now.”_

“Bye, then. Have a good morning, then. I’ll be sleeping while you’re busy.”

_“Good night, Seungcheol. I love you.”_

 

* * *

 

 

_“Seungcheol, this is Hansol!”_

Seungcheol stares at the computer screen- at the man sitting beside Jisoo and feels… uneasy. Hansol is tall, with a mop of brown hair and a charming smile. This was not what he expected.

“Oh. Hi. I’m Seungcheol.”

 _“I’ve heard of you.”_ Hansol’s voice is smooth; easy-going. _“Jisoo talks about you all the time.”_

“Oh. Really?”

 _“He’s just being a brat.”_ Jisoo rolls his eyes. _“I tell him about the crazy stuff we did when we were kids.”_

 _“He told me about the fireworks.”_ Hansol’s lips curve up into a toothy grin. _“That must have been wild.”_

“Huh. Yeah.” Seungcheol somehow feels betrayed, like someone has told all of his secrets. He’d thought that the night when it was just the two of them- watching the stars and setting off probably-illegal silver and red fireworks- was a private thing; an intimate thing. The memory was theirs alone, and now Jisoo had shared it with _Hansol_.

 _“Jisoo tells me you’re an accountant?”_ Hansol is polite. In another world, Seungcheol would have taken a liking to him.

“Yeah. You’re in biochemistry?”

_“Yep! I’m planning to become a pharmacologist. Joshua’s helping me with medical terms and stuff.”_

“Who’s- oh, Jisoo. Oh, cool.”

_“Yeah. I hear you’re into music?”_

“Hmm? Ah, not- not much, not anymore.”

_“Oh. Um, how's the cat?"_

"He's fine."

The atmosphere has become somewhat awkward. Jisoo glances at the screen, then at Hansol, then says something quickly in English. Hansol nods.

_“I’ve got to go check up on the pasta. I’ll be back in a few minutes.”_

_“Add the salt,”_ Jisoo shouts as Hansol goes offscreen. _“Well, that was Hansol. What do you think?”_

“Huh? Yeah, yeah. He seems like a good friend.”

Jisoo opens his mouth as if to say something, but closes it, choosing to play with a pen instead. Seungcheol clears his throat awkwardly.

“He does seem a bit awkward.”

_“I mean, he was really nervous about meeting you. He wanted to make a good impression.”_

“On me? Why?”

_“Well, you’re my best friend, aren’t you?”_

“Of course.”

_“Well, there you go.”_

Seungcheol doesn’t really understand it, but he keeps quiet and moves past it. He doesn’t think he likes where this is going.

“How’s everything going for you?”

_“Hmm? Oh, it’s good.”_

“Are you eating okay? You’re not holed up in your room with homework for the whole day, right? Are you remembering to eat three meals every day?

_“You’re such a worrywart, Cheol. Don’t worry, Hansol’s feeding me with whatever mediocre cooking skills he has.”_

A faint _‘I heard that’_ can be heard, and Jisoo giggles.

_“Okay, I’ve got to go before Hansol burns the apartment down. Good night.”_

“Is that all?”

_“What?”_

“Never mind. Bye.”

 

* * *

 

 

Jisoo calls him at three in the morning on a Wednesday, and Seungcheol blindly grabs his phone before laying back down, exhausted.

“H’llo?”

_“Cheol, you won’t believe what just happened!”_

“It’s not even four in the morning yet. What could possibly be this important?” Seungcheol can already hear Mingyu stirring from the other bunk, and he curses to himself- his roommate’s going to be grumpy in the morning.

_“I’m sorry, I forgot about timezones- but Hansol confessed to me this morning!”_

Seungcheol sits up in bed immediately, fingers curling tightly around his phone. “What?”

_“So we went to this cafe for breakfast, like we usually do, but this time he ordered a chocolate cake for some reason. I asked him why he’d want a cake for breakfast, but he wouldn’t answer me, and he was really nervous for some reason, like he wouldn’t stop jiggling his leg. Then while we were eating, he asked me if I’d go out with him.”_

Seungcheol feels his throat growing dry. He trudges to the kitchen to grab a glass of water.

_“It was so cute, Cheol! I still don’t know why he needed to get a chocolate cake- I guess it was to bribe me- but I knew he liked me anyways, and he knew I’d say yes, cake or no cake. You should have seen it, it was the cutest thing.”_

“Great. Well, have fun. I’m going back to sleep.”

_“Okay, good night! I’ll text you more in the morning, when you’re a little more awake.”_

_“Okay.”_

And just like the last time, Seungcheol feels like there’s something missing.

 

* * *

 

 

_“We’re going to New York in June, once I get a break from school. It’s going to be amazing, since Hansol knows the place so well.”_

Seungcheol’s heart drops to his stomach and he fumbles with the phone. “Um. I thought you were coming back to Korea in the summer?”

_“Hansol wants me to meet his family. I mean, I told him it was a little too early for that, but he insists. I mean, I guess it won’t be too bad.”_

“Let’s not talk about Hansol anymore.”

_“Hmm? Why not?”_

“...I just don’t like him.”

A pause. _“Why don’t you like Hansol? I mean, your approval is important to me, but- but I really like him.”_

“Well, maybe I don’t want him replacing me.”

_“You’ll always be my best friend, Cheol. You know-”_

“That’s not what I mean.”

_“Then what do you mean?”_

“We had something, Jisoo. Something more.”

_“What are you saying?”_

“Don’t play it off like that, Jisoo. You still love me, right?”

Silence. Seungcheol hears Jisoo’s breathing, made rough by static and emotion.

 _“No. No. You had four years,_ four years _to talk to me about this. It was always me being a fool in front of you. You never said anything; you never liked me back. You never told me you wanted anything more.”_

“What if I tell you now?”

_“Seungcheol, stop. It’s too late.”_

“It’s not too late, Jisoo. We can make it work.”

_“There was never a ‘we’, and it can’t happen. I’m with Hansol now.”_

“Are you sure you want to be with him?”

_“Shut up. You’re not going to talk about us like that.”_

“Jisoo, listen to me.”

 _“No. I’m sorry, Seungcheol. I can’t think of you that way.”_ Anymore, is the unspoken word. It lingers in the air, leaving a bad taste in Seungcheol’s mouth.

It’s amazing how tension can be felt across six thousand miles.

“Jisoo?”

_“What?”_

“I love you,” Seungcheol says.

The dial tone echoes through the kitchen.

 

**Author's Note:**

> i've got this angsty cheolsoo two-shot/three-shot all planned out and absolutely no motivation to write it so i wrote this instead and it's 80% dialogue
> 
> find me on tumblr @eggshua to request stuff if you want... or just to check me out ;)))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))


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